2Twenty Years in One Table
Discovery, then coordination, then digitized operations. Marketplaces proved demand and hit the thin-layer limit (Homejoy). ServiceTitan moved the data to the pro side.
~1 min read
| Dominant model | What changed | What remained unresolved |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery (2006–2013) | Directories, search, and reviews moved local reputation online. | Scope, price, availability, fulfillment, service history. |
| Coordination (2013–2022) | Marketplaces added matching, messaging, booking, ratings, payments. | Job variability, disintermediation, quality control, local density. |
| Digitized operations (2007–present) | Vertical software gave contractors CRM, dispatch, payments, job data. | The consumer relationship stayed fragmented across local businesses. |
The marketplace era proved consumers want easier discovery and booking, and exposed the limit of a thin matching layer: once homeowner and professional trust each other, both leave unless the platform keeps adding value. Homejoy's 2015 shutdown compressed every failure mode into one case: weak retention, high acquisition costs, quality variance, disintermediation, worker-classification exposure. [4] A platform has to make the tenth transaction materially better than the first.
Meanwhile the quiet shift happened on the professional side. ServiceTitan reported about 10,800 active customers and $82.1 billion in gross transaction volume for fiscal 2026. Much of the industry's operational data now flows through software the consumer never sees. [5]
The last twenty years digitized the edges of the job. The next phase targets the work between them.